The present invention relates to low-cost, portable copiers which utilize flash lamps as their light source.
Generally speaking, most prior art portable copiers have used electrically-activated flash lamps (e.g. xenon lamps) as the requisite source of radiant energy. A typical example is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,767,969 (R. B. White et al) wherein an ultraviolet imaging tape is exposed to a xenon lamp positioned a specified distance above the tape's path through the copier. Other examples of copiers using electric lamps are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,726,317 (D. B. Rogers) and 3,173,746 (M. M. Rockmore). One disadvantage of electrically-activated copiers is the ever present danger of electrical shock. There is also an inherent cost disadvantage to such devices as a result of the requirement for providing electrical components such as sockets, wiring, switches, etc, all of which are needed to accommodate an electrical lamp.
A third disadvantage particularly inherent in xenon lamp copiers is that the light output of such lamps is known to vary considerably, thus adversely affecting the exposure uniformity of the respective photosensitive material. The light output from xenon lamps may vary as much as plus or minus 25%, depending on the charge to the capacitor which powers the lamp.
To overcome the aforementioned disadvantages, the copy apparatus defined in copending application Ser. No. 796,795 was developed. Broadly speaking, this apparatus uses a fixed enclosure which may be placed atop the desired photosensized sheet and original. The light source, a chemical flash lamp, provides a more uniform output than xenon lamps to thus assure greater exposure uniformity from copy to copy. As defined, however, the apparatus of Ser. No. 796,795 does not readily lend itself to producing copies of small items such as hospital identification tags, processing labels, etc. In this context, it is most preferred to employ a copier which can be hand-held and manually fed the respective unexposed paper and stencil components. With particular regard to hospital and similar environments, it is even more preferred to have a portable copier which can be carried within the pockets of designated personnel and used at a variety of different locations.
It is believed, therefore, that a low-cost, portable copier which possesses the advantages described above would constitute a significant advancement in the art.